HEAT Produced Classics: The Comeback

Billy Thompson and Pat Cummings fueled the Miami Heat’s comeback from a 29-point deficit to defeat the Indiana Pacers in another HEAT classic from the franchise’s first season.

The Miami Heat Index follows up each Sun Sports’ broadcast of a HEAT classic with the estimated wins produced by each player in the game.

An average player produces 0.100 estimated wins per 48 minutes, a star player produces +0.200 est. WP48 and a great player produces +0.300 est. WP48. See the Heat Produced Page for more information on this statistic.

This spreadsheet lists the estimated wins produced stats for the Heat’s 118-117 win at home over the Pacers.

HEAT Production Notes:

• Thompson was the most productive Heat player with 0.443 est.WP48 and 0.3 estimated wins produced from 18 points with 70% shooting efficiency, 12 rebounds, four assists and five fouls. Thompson led the Heat with 9.8 Wins Produced in 1989.
• Pat Cummings was the second-most productive Heat player with 0.502 est.WP48 and 0.2 wins produced from 18 points with 67% shooting efficiency, nine rebounds. Cummings only managed to produce 0.1 wins in the Heat’s first season. Because the Heat were an expansion team, half the players on the roster were less productive than him.
• Rony Seikaly was the least productive Heat player with -0.095 est.WP48 and -0.1 estimated wins produced from 13 points with 27% shooting, 13 rebounds, six assists, three blocks and seven turnovers. Seikaly struggled his rookie year and produced 1.4 losses, which was second-worst on the team.
• Jon Sundvold outplayed Reggie Miller. The least productive player in franchise history produced 0.129 est.WP48 and 0.1 estimated wins from 25 points with 50% shooting efficiency, three steals, three assists and just one turnover.
• Thompson and Sundvold’s play resulted in the Heat starters being 2.4 times more productive than the Pacers starting five.

Pacers Production Notes:

• Point guard Vern Fleming was the most productive Pacer with 0.474 est.WP48 and 0.3 estimated wins produced from 20 points with 75% shooting efficiency, eight rebounds, six assists, two steals and five turnovers.
• Center Rik Smits took advantage of the rookie Seikaly. He was the second-most productive Pacer with 0.340 est.WP48 and 0.2 estimated wins produced from 16 points with 40% shooting efficiency, 15 rebounds and one block. Fortunately for the Heat, he fouled out after playing 36 minutes.
• Point guard Scott Skiles was the least productive Pacer with -0.158 est.WP48 and -0.1 wins produced from five points with 33% shooting efficiency, two steals, three assists, two turnovers and five fouls in 20 minutes. Skiles got the start but his foul trouble resulted in Fleming getting the majority of minutes off the bench.
• Fleming led the Pacers reserves to being 2.5 times more productive than the Heat bench.

Original data taken from basketball-reference.com.